


let tomorrow be clear

by Fiorrella



Category: Love Live! School Idol Project, Love Live! Sunshine!!
Genre: F/F, Fluff, Love Live Secret Santa 2017, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-31
Updated: 2017-12-31
Packaged: 2019-02-24 09:54:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,141
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13211298
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fiorrella/pseuds/Fiorrella
Summary: The pictures glisten under the garnet light of the fireplace, flames flickering in time with You's gentle snores. The clock ticks forward, and Riko turns to the next page of the scrapbook.A mini collection of fluffy YouRiko ficlets.





	1. soft

**Author's Note:**

  * For [youriko_is_my_jam](https://archiveofourown.org/users/youriko_is_my_jam/gifts).



> My entry for the 2017 Love Live Secret Santa over on tumblr. I'm so sorry I couldn't publish this in time for Christmas; I struggled to get the dynamics of this ship and the characterization of You right, but I do like YouRiko and really wanted to take a crack at it (youriko _is_ your jam after all lol). I had been working on another fic but ultimately decided to scrap it and start anew since I wasn't entirely happy with it.
> 
> I hope you had a nice Christmas!

    _01\. you're really soft_

Riko’s learning how to sew, and is having a torrid time of it.

The machine groans despairingly and she grimaces, yanking her foot off the pedal. The ominous rumbling halts immediately, and Riko peers at the fabric. She sighs. “This isn’t working out.”

You looks over the rim of her glasses as Riko coaxes the fabric out and holds it demonstratively in the light. The black thread leers against the cotton in jagged, unsure cracks, and You returns to her own needlework with a cheeky grin. “I told you not to underestimate sewing,” she says flippantly.

Riko reluctantly slides the fabric back under the needle. “I’m scared I’ll break your machine,” she mumbles, releasing the presser foot with a _clang_.

“Don’t worry," You reassures with the same, old unperturbed confidence, "you won’t." Riko simply rolls her eyes.

A minute later, and the mechanical growl once again lurches into silence. Riko sharply sucks in through her teeth, letting out a quiet hiss. “Um,” she says tentatively, “You-chan?”

You doesn't so much as look up. “Yeah?” she asks distractedly, pulling her needle out.

“I don’t know how, but I think I’ve…” Riko trails off. “I think I’ve sewn into my finger.”

You laughs.

She stops laughing once she looks at Riko’s finger.

The next thing Riko knows, she’s sat down on the bed and You’s crouched down at her side, glasses off and carefully plastering a band-aid onto Riko’s swollen finger.

“How the heck d’you manage to sew into your _finger?”_   You’s muttering under her breath. Her brow is furrowed in rapt concentration as she struggles to wrap the plaster tighter.

Riko winces. While she appreciates the concern, she feels as if her finger’s being strangled.

“I don't know,” she repeats out loud. “It just kind of… happened.” She shrugs helplessly.

You frowns -- clearly more confused than before -- and staggers to her feet. “Well, what’s done is done.” She pats Riko’s hand. “You’re all patched up now.”

Riko flexes her finger. It’s a little sore but has long since stopped throbbing. “Thank you,” she says appreciatively.

You flops down onto the bed sheets next to her. “You should really avoid situations like this, you know? You have nice hands”-- at this, she entwines her own hand with Riko’s undamaged one--”so it’s a shame to ruin them.”

Riko holds up their interlaced fist, examining her hand. Her fingers are paler than You's own sunkissed ones, but aside from that, she can't note any other prominent differences. “You think so?” she asks doubtfully. “They seem pretty normal to me.”

“No, they’re so soft!” You squeezes her hand in indication. “It’s kind of like, um…” Her gaze wanders off, unfocused. Riko watches patiently. After a moment, You looks back at her with red cheeks. “I-I don’t know how to describe what it’s like, but it’s really nice.”

Riko chuckles and squeezes her hand back. "Well, thank you."

To Riko’s disappointment, You releases her grip and instead scratches her jaw. “I’m jealous, honestly. They’re much nicer than mine.” She shows Riko her other hand. “See?” She turns it over, gesturing at various bumps and grooves. “Mine are just so calloused and hard.”

Riko shakes her head and gently pries You’s hand away from her, sandwiching it between her own two. “Really? I like them. Strong, calloused and rough…” She trails her thumb along You’s hardy knuckles. “I think these are the hands of a hardworking, dependable person.”

There's a brief pause. Her eyes flicker up to meet You’s, and she snickers. “You-chan,” she says teasingly, “your face has gone bright red.”

You swivels her head away from her, raising their conjoined hands as a shield. “Of course it has!” she splutters, eyes determinedly staring at the cream wall. “Nobody’s ever told me something like that before!”

After a few moments, Riko’s laughter finally dies away, and You gingerly rests their hands back on the duvet. Riko leans back and gazes up at the ceiling, satisfied. “I love you, You-chan.”

The silence stretches on, and Riko’s just about to prod for an answer when You tilts her head just an inch in her direction. Her ears are still red. “I love you too,” she mumbles weakly, and Riko smiles.

* * *

 


	2. snow

_02\. in the snow_

Riko exhales, watching in fascination as her breath dances around her in puffy patches. The cloud clears, and she marvels, “Hakodate’s beautiful."

“Right?” You agrees. “You don’t get to see stuff like this in Uchiura every day.” She’s crouched down on her heels, distractedly doing… something in the snow.

The tips of her ears are already grazed bright pink, and Riko frowns. “Are you sure you’re dressed properly?” she frets. “You know how bad your immune system is.”

You hums noncommittally, not even sparing the other girl a glance. This only spurs Riko on, and she takes a step forward. “Hey, are you even listening?” she demands.

You, to her relief, finally looks at her, a ball of snow cupped between gloved hands. “Do you want my scarf?” Riko asks her, tugging at her muffler. “I can give you it if you wa-- _ack!”_

Riko’s interrupted as the snowball catapults through the air and firmly buries itself against her shoulder. She stumbles back, clutching her arm in shock, and the weapon effortlessly bounces back onto the ground before crumbling into harmless little flakes of ice.

“Gotcha!” You whoops from across her, striking a victory pose.

Riko brushes the snow off of her coat and breathes out a long, suffering sigh. “I’m standing like two feet away from you--” Another ball is thrown, this time square in her stomach, and she yelps, jumping back. _“Agh, stop it!”_

You grins mischievously as she watches Riko back away, putting a safer distance between the two. Yet another snowball’s been prepared in her hands _(how_ does she make them so fast?!), of which she rolls sinisterly between her palms. “Two-nil to Watanabe!” she declares, lunging the third bullet at Riko.

Riko -- perhaps due to her newfound distance -- manages to dodge it, leaving her to only watch in horror as it pitifully flops into a tree behind her.

From the corner of her eye, You lets out a too-cheerful-to-be-genuine groan, and Riko swivels around to her. “Sorry!” You calls cheekily, hands already busy preparing another snowball. “I won’t miss this one!”

Riko’s eyes narrow, and she quickly ducks as another ball of sleet sails by her shoulder. She settles onto her knees, gloved hands covering quivering ears. “Is _that_ how you want to play it?” she mutters darkly.

Ten minutes later and both red-faced girls are spread out on the footprint-covered snow, panting with sweat trickling down their neck in cold, wet lanes.

“I didn’t expect you to win,” You manages to say through heaves.

Riko grins in triumph. “You need to have a plan,” she says wisely. “You’ll never get anywhere by just blindly attacking.”

You rolls onto her stomach, propping herself up with two arms. “So that was my downfall, huh?”

Riko nods breathlessly, and You reaches out to push down on her nose. “Dork,” she says affectionately.

Riko just wrinkles her nose.

You dumps herself down next to Riko, wriggling closer to her until their bodies are snugly pressed together. Her arm wraps itself around Riko’s waist, and Riko frowns down at her. “You alright?” she asks, concerned.

“Cold,” You mumbles into her neck.

Riko huffs. “I told you to dress warmer…” She gently nudges her elbow into You’s stomach. “Hey, we should go inside. We can’t afford to have you getting another cold, can we? I’ll get one as well at this rate.”

You only shifts slightly in response. Riko can’t blame her; she’s too tired to get up herself, and laying down together in the snow is _nice,_ no matter how cold it may be.

“You have a diving competition next week,” Riko tries, as if saying that'll somehow persuade the both of them to pull each other to their feet. “We have a performance this month, too.”

You mewls something inaudible, huddling closer. Her whole body is warm, throbbing with life and energy. Riko sighs, closes her eyes, and accepts her fate on the snow as good as sealed.

* * *

 


	3. fever

_03\. fever_

“I can’t believe this,” Riko mutters. She stirs the soup through gritted teeth. “Actually, I can believe this. You got sick. _Again.”_

You ignores her, instead choosing to sniffle into a tissue. She throws it at the bin and it bounces off the rim before rolling uselessly onto the floor. She watches it for a moment, wondering if she can be bothered to pick it up, before simply sinking back into her pillows and whining hoarsely, “Riko-chan.”

Riko sighs, reluctantly setting down the bowl. She shuffles over to the scrunched up ball and picks it up between two dainty fingers. She pulls a face. “Gross,” she mutters, dropping it into the bin. “What would the members of your swim team say if they saw you in this sorry state?”

You taps her chin thoughtfully. “They’d probably just laugh at me,” she says. “Something like _‘Oh, You got sick again?’_ Then they’d just shake their heads and walk off.”

Riko makes a dissatisfied sounding noise from the back of her throat. “Your teammates should care more about your well being.”

“Well, they did at the start, but I think they got fed up with coddling me after a while,” You admits with a hoarse laugh.

“I can see that happening,” Riko says, frowning, “seeing as how you get sick every two months.”

You sniffs, rubbing the back of her neck sheepishly. “Am I that unreliable?”

Riko visibly softens up. She taps her shoulder as she sits back down and crosses her ankles. “It’s not that _you’re_ unreliable; it’s just that your immune system is.” She scoops up a spoonful of soup and holds it out, the edges of her lips tugging back down as she says, "...but you don’t really make it easy for yourself by constantly putting yourself in stupid and easily avoidable situations.”

You obediently opens her mouth. She thickly swallows down the hot liquid and huddles her blanket closer to her, relishing in the new warmth. “You sound like one of my underclassmen." She closes her eyes and leans her head back. “She’s always getting on my case about being too carefree and having a great future -- all that stuff. To be honest, talking to her is kind of embarrassing. It's like she's my mum," she grumbles.

Riko shakes her head fondly. “You should probably listen to her.”

"Not you as well!" You groans and stretches her hands out. “I seriously can’t tell if she hates or loves me; half the time she’s lecturing me, and the other half she’s complimenting me.”

“She probably loves you if she’s so worried about you,” Riko says. She pokes at her chin with the soup spoon until You opens her mouth. “I love you too, so seeing you like this worries me as well.”

You grimaces, crossing her arms. “If it worries you two so much, then I should probably think of a fix-it then, shouldn’t I?” Their conversation dips into silence for barely two seconds before her eyes light back up. “Hey. d’you think that if I locked myself in a room with lots of sick people, my immune system would improve?”

Riko snorts and covers her mouth, eyes creasing in mirth. “Maybe, but you’d also get very sick.”

You hums under her breath. “Then you need to find some sick people for me, Riko-chan."

“It’d be easier if you were just more aware of your own health," Riko argues, accusatorily waving the soup spoon at her. "You getting sick creates a lot of work for me."

You grins. “Yeah, and thank you for that. Not many people have treated me to homemade soup,” she says as she reaches for another tissue. Her hand pauses, and she looks up at the clock. “Oh hey, isn’t it time for you to get going now?”

Riko’s gaze traces along hers. Her brow shoots up, and she looks back at You anxiously. “Do you need me to stay?"

You sighs. “Sheesh, Riko-chan, it’s only a cold. I’ll be fine,” she reprimands, pouting at her from over the duvet. “Your dad’s coming home early today, isn’t he? Go see him.”

Riko worries her lip. “Are you su--”

“--Yeah,” You cuts off, folding her arms crossly. “C’mon, shoo! I don’t want to see any more of you!”

Face finally softening, Riko laughs and sets down the soup bowl, picking up her bag instead. “Okay, okay, I'm going.” The wooden chair scrapes back as she leans forward and presses a chaste kiss to You’s forehead. She pats her hand and says, “Get well soon.”

You salutes and shoots her a broad smile. “Will do.”

* * *

 


End file.
